New York City -- American Express Co. announced on Monday that it has introduced a new digital payment service it calls Serve, enabling customers to choose among multiple options to make payments linked to a single account.

The account can be funded from a bank account or a debit, credit or charge card. Payments can be made online, via mobile phones or at stores that accept American Express cards.

The service also enables person-to-person transactions with other people who have Serve accounts, enabling American Express to compete in some ways with PayPal, the digital payment service owned by Internet auction site eBay.

American Express said Serve is aimed at consumers who currently rely on cash, checks and debit cards.